


Sweater

by Les5tasses



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Bit sad, But mostly fluff, Darillium mention, F/M, Maybe it's OOC idk wrote it at 1am?, No beta read we die like River Song, River song is only mentionned, Short Fics, let 12 be happy, moving on with grief
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-23
Updated: 2021-02-23
Packaged: 2021-03-13 01:20:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,028
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29643612
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Les5tasses/pseuds/Les5tasses
Summary: Bill is cold and gets a sweater from the TARDIS before they leave for another adventure. It's River's sweater.
Relationships: The Doctor/River Song, Twelfth Doctor & Bill Potts, Twelfth Doctor/River Song
Comments: 6
Kudos: 29





	Sweater

The Doctor's finger taps rapidly against his arm as he waits for his companion to return, his back lying against the frame of the open door of the TARDIS. He opens his mouth, as if he was about to shout out a comment into the distance, then closes it soundlessly. Instead he wrinkles his noth and stares at the paysage offering itself before his eyes. 

He looks at the vast plain of pure white flowers shivering under the light brise, slowly moving in unison. A calming ocean. They should have already been exploring the place for at least ten minutes. Approximately. The Doctor had never been the most accurate on the notion of time.

But the moment they had stepped foot on this planet, Bill had started shivering and despite his numerous affirmation that the weather was not as terrible as she was trying to make it seem, Bill had instead she was simply going to freeze alive if she did not get a sweater to wear. He had, of course, given up to her protest and the young companion had immediately disappeared, finding by herself the way to the TARDIS’s wardrobe. 

"I'm here!" 

He stops himself from offering any comment on how long it had taken her -knowing himself he was probably in the wrong and would only create a useless fight- but not from offering her a shrug.

Bill almost runs to his side, excited as well at the idea to finally get to explore this new planet. When she sets foot on the world, the university student starts to strolls around with the same energy she always has, disturbing the peaceful waves of flowers. Around her, the white petals of the flowers slowly raise up the air, swirling around her as if snow was falling the other way. 

“This is so cool! Wait.. I hope it’s not gonna turn out to be dangerous right? ‘Cause there’s always something that’s dangerous with you and I really don’t want those to like, burn my skin. ‘Cause I saw this show with like students, and then there’s those red petals falling and they eat the skin of people and like...”

The Doctor does not react to her rambling, does not even frown an eyebrows as he would usually do. It is like he’s not even paying attention to what she’s saying, his whole attention focused on the sweatshirt she’s wearing. It’s a light beige colour, a bit worn out by the years and there’s even some thread coming out of the end of the sleeve. And in the middle of the sweater, a large and colorful logo represents a planet and its moon embroidered in a lavender yarn surrounded by a deep green laurel wreath. Under it, in the same colour as the planets, is written the name of a school; Luna University.

" I took the first one I found, looked comfy.” She grabs part of the sweater, to better look at the logo. “Is there really a univervisity on the moon? Do students have dorms there or do they like, have to go back to earth every night on little spaceships?" 

The Doctor tries to look away, to think about the adventure they have awaiting, to hide the melancholic expression on his face, but no matter how hard he tries, he finds himself staring at the sweater, painful memories piercing through his heart. He can’t focus on what she’s saying. He’s seen this sweater worn by another so many times already. By one that won’t wear it ever again.

Without even thinking about it, his thumb goes to the ring on his finger, starting to slowly rub it as if it would ease the ache in his heart.

He can still picture her wearing wearing this hoodie on her lazy sunday, sprawled across the sofa with a cup of tea he’d maken for her in one and a book on archeology in the other, her glasses she hated so much on the perch of her nose and her glorious mane tied back with an hair tie that always looked on the verge of exploding. He can still remember how she’d pretend to be annoyed at him for making her wear it, a mischievous twinkle in her eye, all of it only because he was actually wearing his own hoodie therefore not allowing her to borrow it. Marry an archeologist, that’s what it had bloody given him, a hoodie stealer. But the smartest and most gorgeous one at least. 

“Is something wrong?”

Bill’s question wakes him up from his thoughts and the Doctor has to blink before he can look at her, see the slight frown in her eyebrows and the concern on her face.

“It’s nothing really… I just hadn't seen this in a long time.”

“Wait I’m sorry I didn't know it was important! I just grabbed it because it was here but I can change if I’m not supposed to wear it!”

“No, no… Don’t worry.”

He smiles and, for someone very observant of his expression, the melancholy is still clearly. But there is no sadness in it. He’s not the young and hyperactive man he once was, unable to close a story and say goodbye to those around him and to her specifically. He has had Darillium. And if he knows he’ll never forgets -and oh the mere idea of it frightens him- but thinking about her doesn't have to always be painful. So he thinks. He thinks about River and the young companion in front of him, about how much his wife would have loved the young girl. They’d have been the end of him two of them. And slowly his melancholic smile turns into a smirk.

“Keep the sweater, better on you than taking the dust in this old box.”

And River would have liked you wearing it, he restrains from adding. If there is one person that his wife would be okay wearing her old sweater, it surely is the young companion that makes fun of her husband but also finally makes him smile after so many years of grief. 

“So, warm enough to see the rest of the planet now?”


End file.
